Slack adjuster for railway car brakes



Dec. 1, 1931. wRlGLEY 1,834,081

SLACK ADJUSTER FOR RAILWAY CAR BRAKES Original Filed Nov. 14, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Dec. 1, 1931. H. 1. WRIGLEY 1,834,081

SLACK ADJUSTER FOR RAILWAY CAR BRAKES Original Filed Nov. 14, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Dec. 1, 1931 UNITED STATES PATENT o FIcE. f

HENRY I. WRIGLEY, or CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, AssIGNoRTo unrvEnsAL DRAFT GEAR ATTACHMENT 00., A coRroaATIoN or ILLINOIS SLACK ADJUSTER FOR RAI WAY CAR BRAKES Application filed November 14, 1928, Serial No. 319,343. Renew August 11, 1930."

The invention relates to manually operated adjusters for the foundation brake rigging of a railway car, its objects being to secure simplicity of construction. with ease 5 and accuracy of adjustment.

This disclosed embodiment of the invenion, while fully providing for the objects in view may be deviated from within its scope.

In the'drawings, Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic view of the device as applied to a railway car;

Fig. 2 is a sectional View on the line 22 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a view in perspective of a fulcrum block employed in the invention;

Fig. 4 is a detail plan View of the device; and

Figs. 5 and 6 are detail sections on the line 5-5 of Fig. 4, the parts being shown in different positions.

A pair of car sills is represented at 10. At 11, there is conventionally shown the air cylinder for operating the brakes, its piston rod being attached to a live lever 12 which is connected by a pull rod 13 with a brake lever of one of the trucks and by a pull rod 14 with the dead cylinder lever 15, the fulcrum 16 of which takes the form of a bolt setting through a travelling element 17 which is slidably mounted upon a bar 18 rigidly attached to the framing of the car as byl means of brackets 19, 20 attached to one of the sills 10. The element 17 in service position is locked to the bar 18 by means of a tion, it becomes necessary to reposition the fulcrum of the lever 15. This is accomplished in the present instance by first withdrawing the bolt 21 and then pulling back the lever 15 until the brakes are brought snugly to the wheels.

The element 17 remains stationary until bolt 21. hen the brakes are applied, the

the pin 16 reaches the right or rear end of the slot 22. The length of this slot is such that it permits the movement of the leversufiicient to take up normal brake-slack.

The further backward movement of the lever carries the element 17 with it a distance corresponding with the excessive slack. The

bolt 21 is now insertedthrough registeringapertures in the member 17 and bar '18. The

lever now returns to release position and is arrested in this movement by engagement of the bolt 16 with the forward end of the slot 22, and the shoes are now spaced-from the wheels the normal distance, and subsequent brake applications require only the normal movement of the cylinder piston- Further readjustment, when required, maybe made in the same manner.

The bar 18 is flat, its longer transverse dimension being vertical; the-element 17 is L- shaped in cross-section, having a vertical leg apertured to receive-the bar 18 anda horizontal leg which is apertured to receive the lever 15. One advantage of this shape is that itprovides clearance for the lower end of the b0lt16 and the convenient application thereto of a retaining cotter. Both the bar 18 and the vertical leg or loop of the element 17 are provided with a longitudinal series of bolt receiving apertures 23, 24, the apertures of the two series being differently spaced to provide for a finer adjustment than could otherwise be secured.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a slack adjuster for railway car brakes, in combination, a fixed flattened bar having a longitudinal series of bolt holes, a traveler sleeved upon the bar and having a laterally overhanging head transversely apertured to receive a lever of the brake system and vertically and longitudinally slotted to receive a pivot pin for the lever, and a bolt set through registering holes in the bar and traveler.

2'. In a slack adjuster for railway car brakes, in combination, a fixed flattened bar having a longitudinal series of boltholes, a traveler sleeved upon the bar and having a laterally overhanging head transversely apertured to receive a lever of the brake system and vertically and longitudinally slotted to receive a pivot pin for the lever, and a bolt set through registering holes in the bar and traveler, the bolt holes of the traveler and bar being differently spaced apart.

3. In a slack adjuster for railway car brakes; in combination, a bar, a block sleeved upon the bar, one of such elements being fixed and the other movable, a pivot pin for anchoring a lever of the brake system toone' of such elements, the pivot passing through and movable in a lon itudinal slot in. the block,alongitudinal series ofbolt holes in'the bar,va complemental hole in theblock, anda 15 bolt for passing through such holes when in register. c it 7 t 4;. In a slack adjuster for railway car brakes, in combination, a bar, a block sleeved upon the bar, one of such elements being i fixed and the other movable, a longitudinal series of bolt holes in one of said elements, aJhOlein the other element registrable with the variousho'les of the series, a bolt forpassing throughvregistering' holes, and a lever of the brake system passing loosely through the block and having lost motion connection therewith corresponding with the normal slack ofthe system.

5; In a slack adjuster for railway brake, go a bar'adapted to be rigidly attached to acar' and having a longitudinal series of holes, a block adapted to be pivotedto a brake lever and forming a fulcrum therefons loop on the block extending around the'bar and limita ing the block to longitudinal movement with respect to the bar and apin in one oft-he'holes in the bar cooperating with the block to hold the latter against movement under brake setting stresses.

nfnnr.

40 Intestimon'y whereof I alfix si nature.

HENRY I. 

